Manchester On The Ascendancy

Those who live in Manchester must feel a certain pride that the city has been named one of the top ten cities in the world to visit next year by the travel guide, Lonely Planet. Hailed as a ‘dynamo of culture and the arts’, Manchester was praised for its inspirational attractions including galleries, theatres and, last but not least, football.

It’s ranked eighth in Lonely Planet’s Best in Travel 2016 list, behind Dublin but ahead of Rome. Manchester has been lavished with new investment as the unofficial capital of the government’s much-heralded ‘Northern Power House’. Describing the city as ‘the UK’s cultural boom town,’ the guide picks out the Whitworth Art Gallery – which had a £15 million regeneration, as the country’s most important.

James Smart, of Lonely Planet, said: ‘Manchester has been transformed in recent years. Whatever experience travellers are after – culture, sport, shopping, nightlife – they won’t come away disappointed.’